Animal stalls for horses, cattle, etc. pose particular problems, since the liquid and solid waste excrement by the animal must be periodically removed. Additionally, since the stalls are areas where the animals bed down, provisions must be made for providing some comfort to the animals. Conventionally, straw or wood chips are employed as bedding, however, straw is becoming relatively expensive and a regular supply is difficult to obtain. Since the straw or other bedding once soiled requires periodic removal, attempts have been made to create a better stall flooring which permits the soiled bedding to be readily removed, permits the draining of urine, and which maximizes the comfort of the animal.
The flooring within the barn or other building housing the animal in individual or stall known as "cubicles" or "cow-kennel" is typically in the past, dirt or a mud floor. Attempts have been made to employ wooden grating or the like overlying the mud floor so that the standing animal may defecate and/or urinate directly through the wooden grating. Unfortunately, mud floors (without grating) locally leaves holes which require constant attention, since the urine collects and cannot be easily disposed of. Irrespective of the nature of the flooring, bedding such as straw is required to some extent.
Attempts in improving such animal flooring structures are evidenced by U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,662,715; 3,718,119; 4,208,279; 4,235,197; 4,338,369; and 4,364,331.
A number of these patents utilize some type of surface decking, partially embedded in sand or gravel so as to support the animals, yet provide a permeable support so that the urine can drain through the sand, gravel, or both, thereby facilitating its removal, while permitting the solids portions of the waste to be removed by shovels or the like passing over the exposed top of the surface decking.
Such floor systems, however, as constructed in the past, are expensive, with surface decking formed of metal such as sheet steel having apertures or openings therein, or of molded plastic decking sections are not only expensive, but tend to flex or bend locally under the loads imposed by the animal, and impair the removal of the solids waste, or the soiled bedding such as straw, wood chips, or the like.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an improved animal stall in which the stall retains the bedding in a more sanitary condition for a longer period of time, permits faster clean up of soiled bedding, provides better footing for the animal, and a more comfortable bed for the animal housed therein.